a million blackbirds
fling full stops at the horizon
but who do I prefer to believe –
the lady in black feathers
who owns and occupies
a fig tree
or the slothful bugger
who lives in the letter box
posting mail to himself
or the toilet roll author
of Kingdom Street
the tusitala of white lies
of uninhibited wafflings /
the view from here
is global / inviting
extinct frogs
continue to purse their lips
to chirp (bird-like) through solitary séances
the moon’s / a cold lump
stuck hard
and helmeted
but I prefer the brunette
her feather cloak
her moulting shadow her strut
I coax her to come in
share the dilated vista of another’s reality
I’m the tourist guide bus driver jesus janitor / the son
reorganising the future footprints of a family yet to cement
its language in stone in grubby layers broken like old teeth
another thing?
I walk through my house every day
to the sound
of water music
a forest shuffling its roots
doors opening shutting
a mango melting at the altar of my mouth
but then
not all is at right angles
all isn’t the perfect hideout
for this fresh-air junkie
contemplating
a dreamtime jaunt
an astral flight /
with no strings dangling
loose-limbed haloes
break down
dissolve
reviving an animal magnetism
I retreat into the hood of my consciousness
groping for the lady’s
anatomy
her tightening grip – this flesh
and blood
mix of polarities
Credit note: “tusitala of white lies” is the title poem of Iain Britton’s latest collection, a poetry pamphlet published by Like This Press in the UK. It is reproduced here by permission of the author.
Tim says: Iain Britton is a fine New Zealand poet whose work deserves to be better known. I interviewed Iain in 2009 for this blog, and since then, he’s continued to have success publishing his work both in Aotearoa and internationally, as his bio shows:
Credit note: “tusitala of white lies” is the title poem of Iain Britton’s latest collection, a poetry pamphlet published by Like This Press in the UK. It is reproduced here by permission of the author.
Tim says: Iain Britton is a fine New Zealand poet whose work deserves to be better known. I interviewed Iain in 2009 for this blog, and since then, he’s continued to have success publishing his work both in Aotearoa and internationally, as his bio shows:
Oystercatcher Press published my 3rd poetry collection in 2009, Kilmog Press my 4th in 2010. The Red Ceilings Press and the Argotist have recently published ebooks. A full collection with Lapwing Publications is out now, plus a pamphlet from Like This Press. Beard of Bees (US) chapbook in now online. Forthcoming – poems in Peter Hughes’ Sea Pie: a Shearsman Anthology of Oystercatcher Poetry. Also, Department Press and The Gumtree Press will be publishing collections later this year or in 2013.
The Tuesday Poem: Check out today’s hub poem, and all the individual Tuesday Poems linked from the sidebar to the left, on the Tuesday Poem blog.
This really woke me up! Vivid imagery such 'a mango melting at the altar of my mouth', and the way that the poem doesn't slide into easy interpretation makes it demand several readings.
Thanks, Penelope – Iain's poems often require repeated readings, but I find they are worth the effort.